Bath for treating metals



l V "UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN MENSDORF, OF ETNA, PENNSYLVANIA.

BATH FOR TREATING M ETALS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 253,937, dated February 21, 1882.

Applidation filed December 22, 1881. (No specimens.)

To all whom it may cancer m" Be it known that I, JOHN MENSDORF, of Etna borough, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Baths forTreatin g Metals; and 1 do hereby declare the following to bee full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to certain improvements in compositions or solutions for treating cast and malleable cast iron, its object being to steelify the cast or malleable iron, so as to render it hard, compact, andtough, so that it can be employed for many uses for which the finer grades of steel have generally been employed.

To this end it consists in a bath for treating the metal composed of Jamestown weed, apples, turnips, and water in proper proportions, in which the casting, whether malleableized or not, is cooled after having been heated, so as to open its pores, this treatment toughening and hardening the metal and compacting the grain so as to impart to it the qualities of a fine grade of steel.

To enable others skilled in the'art to use my invention, I will describe the same more fully. t

My improved bath is composed of J amestown weed, (Stmmonimm) one ounce, (1 oz.;) apples, one ounce, (1 oz.;) turnips, two ounces, (2 oz.;) water, one gallon, (l gal.) These ingredients are either scalded or boiled for a few minutes in part of the water and then permitted to cool. The proportions of the ingredients may of course be somewhat varied; butI have found the proportions above set forth to work most satisfactorily when the remainder of the proportion of water is added,

though the entire proportion of water may be used in a boiling state at one time, and the bath then permitted to cool.

My improved bat-h may be employed to advantage both with the ordinary castings formed from cast-iron and with the castings after having been decarburized by the ordinary methods of malleableizing cast-iron, the malleable iron being of course more tough and tenaceous after treatment than the castiron, but both being rendered more compact in grain, hard or tempered, tough, and strong by my improved process. The castings are heated in a suitable furnace to a moderate heat, ordinarily known as a cherry-red heat, at which temperature the pores of the metal are opened, so as to permit the bath or solution to penetrate entirely through the casting and produce the same effect throughout. A lower heat is not desirable, as it would not open the pores of the metal sufticiently, and the desired result would not be obtained, or only the outer film would be affected, leaving the balance of the casting open in grain and liable to break. At a high heat the castings are liable to sag out of shape in the furnace and warp in cooling as well as to rapidly evaporate the water of the bath, so changing the proportions of the ingredients and impairing the effect of the bath. When brought to the proper heat, as aforesaid, the castings are placed in the solution ortbath previously made and allowed to cool therein, as is usual in tempering steel.

vIn prder to regulate the degree of hardness to be imparted to the castings, instead of varying the solution, I generally employ urinia, this counteracting the other materials in proportion to the amount used, and increasing the toughness or tenacity of the metal. The amount used varies from one to three liquid ounces, and by its use those skilled in the art can accurately regulate the temper of the article treated.

Articles treated in my improved bath, as above described, will-be greatly improved in quality, the treatment not only compacting the grain, but also imparting toughness, tenacity, and hardness to the casting. Where articles treated have been broken, the fracture shows that the grain has been compacted so as to appear at least one-third closer than parts of the same'casting before treatment, and to present much the same appearance as the grain of steel. Cast and malleableized articles so treated have been found as hard as or harder than tempered steel and tougher, keeping their edge better and notbeing liable to chip off or break, so that articles so treated are excellent for hammers, chasing, drilling, In testimony whereofI, the said JOHN MENS- r a and planing tools, as well as for parts of ma- DORF, have hereunto set my hand. ohiner Wh t I claim as my invention, and desire to JOHN MEN SDORF. 5 secure by Letters Patent, is-

A bath for treating cast-iron or malleable Witnesses: cast-iron, composed of Jamestown weed, ap- JAMES I. KAY, ples, turnips, and water, substantially in the F. G. KAY. proportions and for the purposes specified. 

